Joint Statement from the American Border Collie Association and The ABCA Health & Education Foundation On the EAOD Test currently offered by ProjectDOG
The ABCA and ABCA Foundation are very concerned about early adult onset deafness (EAOD) in working Border Collies. We have spent years studying this condition, fostering research, and considering the best way forward. The condition is devastating for owners of individual dogs, for individual breeding programs, and most importantly, for the long-term health of the working Border Collie gene pool. The conclusions contained in this statement were not made hastily or lightly. They were arrived at after serious and lengthy consultation with Mark Neff and Alison Ruhe, the team behind projectDOG, and after seeking second opinions from a number of well-respected scientists in the field of genetic research from around the country. (Full statement here.) 6/9/2016